The word “casual” is more often used as an insult than a description, but it doesn't have to be. It can instead be a useful way of describing a genre of games that are just as likely to be your jam as any other—the kind of games anyone can pick up and play, whether they're familiar with typical gamer conventions or not, perfect for short sessions as well as deep dives.Casual games don't have to be easy (endless mode in Plants vs. Zombies is no picnic), they just have to be easy to get into. Match-3 puzzle games like Bejeweled are casual, but so are Solitaire and Tetris, Mini Metro and Forager. Our weekend question is: What's your favorite 'casual' game? Here are our answers, plus a few from our forum.
THE PCG Q&A Find all previous editions of the PCG Q&A here. Some highlights: – What weather adds the most to a game? – Have you ever defeated a boss by exploiting a bug or a cheesy strat? – What was the best game on your school computers? The word “casual” is more often used as an insult than a description, but it doesn’t have to be. It can instead be a useful way of describing a genre of games that are just as likely to be your jam as any other—the kind of games anyone can pick up and play, whether they’re familiar with typical gamer conventions or not, perfect for short sessions as well as deep dives. Casual games don’t have to be easy (endless mode in Plants vs. Zombies is no picnic), they just have to be easy to get into. Match-3 puzzle games like Bejeweled are casual, but so are Solitaire and Tetris, Mini Metro and Forager. Our weekend question is: What’s your favorite ‘casual’ game? Here are our answers, plus a few from our forum. (Image credit: Future) James Davenport: Peggle, baby. My first go at Peggle was on one of the early iPods, actually, the kind with the scroll wheel. I’d get some rounds in at lunch during my old high school construction job, sweating my ass off in some pickup truck while getting paid under the table. After mastering the wheel, I took it to the PC. Peggle and Peggle Nights, perfected. A tiny ball soothsayer, this guy. I can still tell you where anything is gonna bounce. Drop something. Try me. Steven Messner: I don’t think anything I play constitutes as a casual game—and I’m especially averse to most puzzle games that probably overlap with that description. It’s not for any real reason that they just don’t interest me and I don’t have a lot of moments where I’m looking for a quick entertainment fix that would be perfected suited with a round of Tetris or something. I think the closest thing I play that could be considered a casual game might be Teamfight Tactics, Riot Games’ autobattler. But even though that game is very passive and does have a fun puzzle-like air about it, it’s also hyper competitive and the entire time I’m playing I tend to have three Chrome tabs open that I’m jumping between as I figure out my team composition and strategy. Not exactly the same as kicking back and playing some Puzzle Bobble or whatever. But now I kinda feel like maybe there’s a casual-game-shaped hole in my life that I didn’t even realize was there. (Image credit: SEGA) Wes Fenlon: I’m not sure it’s actually fair to call Puyo Tetris a casual game when it can be aggressively competitive, but it’s the only game of this type I’ve spent much time with in the last few years.
